A thermal droplet generator with monolithic photopolymer nozzle plate

A monolithic thermal droplet generator with photopolymer nozzle plate has been developed and demonstrated to operate successfully. The micro droplet generators are realized by direct formation of the nozzles plate, made by SU-8 photoresist, on the top of a silicon wafer with a micro heater array. For the monolithic fabrication, a UV-dosage control and antireflection coating techniques are used to form chambers, manifolds and nozzles. This simpler and more cost-effective fabrication process can lower the fabrication complexity as well as cost, and achieve high alignment accuracy on the nozzle plate to the heater.